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mkean's review against another edition
4.0
this could have easily been an amazing book. however, the two storylines were too detached in order to weave the two together. there could have been wonderful parallels between the myth and reality, but unfortunately, it remained separate. the book was certainly well written though, quite beautiful in some places.
ocole10's review against another edition
informative
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
keruichun212's review against another edition
1.0
I was really excited to read this book due to all the stellar reviews, but was severely disappointed. Perhaps caught in the trap of too high expectations? Don't get me wrong, the writing style was incredible and beautifully done. It would have been a pleasure to read if it just wasn't so incredibly depressing. And if the descriptions of things were halved. I ended up skimming through several sections because I got so bored. But that's me, I don't really care what the tree looks like, I just want to know why the tree is important to the story...and move along with the story. I also take issue with the voice the author used to tell the, ahem, story. It's supposed to be told from the perspective of a girl. Not sure the age, but young. The language and logic and formed thoughts and explanations were most definitely not those of a young girl, though. At least, not to me. But the biggest problem of the book was that I felt depressed reading it. It's a small book, I should have been able to read it in a day. It took me a week because I kept having to put it down, never wanting to pick it back up. I feel like the Norse people, or whoever came up with these myths, must have been a miserable people. And the modern day child must have been miserable. Even the one bright spot in the non-myth narrative was tempered by misery. I finished the book because I was determined to see it through to the end. I regret that decision.
bookfrogglin's review against another edition
3.0
Not usually the type of book I read, but it looked interesting. I am glad I read it, as I found it absorbing but slightly unsatisfactory. I don't believe it needed the thoughts on myths at the end and it detracted from the books initial impact for me, which is a shame.
provaprova's review against another edition
3.0
Byatt's Norse is not mine; she writes very well, but to me, Norse myth is about the striking verse, the illuminating kenning, the weirdly powerful line, yoked to phantasmagoric unconnected incidents under the dark shadow of Wyrd... (Much shorter than expected.)
farthestfrom's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
woolfy_vita's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
alisadb's review against another edition
dark
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
emdowd's review against another edition
2.0
I wish I liked this more. The premise is brilliant and I like mythology in general, so I was quite disappointed to see how difficult to get into this book ended up being. The prose is beautiful, both in terms of rhythm and evocative language, but something was off. I wasn't sure what, exactly, Byatt wants us to get out of this (the myths themselves or her version of them).